New Books for Review

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Pump Up Your Book Chats with Judy Carlson, author of The White Knight, the Lost Kingdom, and the Sea Princess

Thanks for joining us at the book club Judy. Can we begin by having you tell us how you got into writing?

Started as a child with loving stories then writing diaries and letters to friends and school work. Wrote my first myth at age 10. "the Flight of Xvoris".

Why did you choose to write novels in the mythical fantasy genre?

I have loved making up oral myth for my children and now grands. I also loved C S Lewis Chronicles of Narnia for years as well as all the mythical and fairy tales of the centuries.

Where is your book set and why did you choose that location?

In a different world than ours "Tundrand and the Northern Dominions and the Eastern Island kingdom of Ajar" of necessity. Also St. Paul, Minnesota where I grew up.

I’d like to know more about The White Knight. Can you give us a little background into why you wrote the novel?

I wanted a story in the tradition of The mythical writers esp C. S. Lewis. So I decided to give the world another Chronicle but it became a saga.

I’d like to know more about your main character. Can you tell us more about him/her?

Aryel is The White Knight from another sphere and very Germaine to the tale but King Lael is the main human character although he shares the stage with many main characters. He is passionate, dashing, lonely, noble, in love, faltering but forging his way to kingliness thru adversity.

Can you tell us a little about the other supporting characters?

Nutall a small but mighty foe. Talking squirrel. The beautiful Mermaid Tritona was captured by an evil Sea Lord who is forcing her to wed him. A mystery hangs about her and Lael the king also loves her. Ian the kid from Minnesota and his Cousin Clara are headed for harrowing circumstances.

They say all fiction books have pivotal points in the book where the reader just can’t put the book down. What’s one pivotal point in The White Knight?

When the king meets the Mermaid and they fall in love but are torn from each other and the king us devastated by more horrors on that day.

What’s next on the agenda for you, Judy?

I am a writer and I am continuing to write.

What would you like to say to your readers and fans?

I love this story and it will always be my greatest written treasure. But write to me at my email address or my blog if you gave a comment of any kind.

Just as the creator of the Chronicles of Narnia decided to try his writer’s hand and imagination, I decided to try something too. And so, I have written a story of my own having been prompted by that same idea of creating a God presence in another place. No, it is not Narnia but it isa new world similar yet different from our own. Surely, as I write this, I was inspired by the man who has invited tens of thousands of readers and not a few writers to write, think and look beyond this ‘shadow land’ called earth. I have named it The White Knight, the Lost Kingdom, and the Sea Princess’.

It is a story of intrigue and ever present danger in a world populated by creatures and mortals, whose destiny hangs by the threads of an Emperor’s vision, a prince’s lost love, mysterious foes, enchanting forest maidens, unlikely heroes, and a mermaid-heroine. All of this is wrapped up in a champion so invincible, yet mysterious, that he challenges the Dark Sorcerer with supernatural forces of a fascinating nature, using even the humblest of defenders. This profound love story will leave you with a taste for a country and a universe beyond your dreams and even imaginings. A world that is A fairy tale come true, and one “you will never want to end”.

IT MAY BECOME YOUR TRUEST 'HAPPILY EVER AFTER' STORY, AND perhaps YOUR OWN FAIRY TALE WILL NEVER END AS WELL.

Book Excerpt:

Chapter 1:

The Vanquished Kingdom

Under the Laws of Providence We have duties which are perilous. –Austin Phelps

Affliction is a treasure, and scarce any man hath enough of it. –John Donne

A deathly pall hung over the palace and the city of Ajar as the threatening presence of the insidious Black Guard escalated.

“Hurry!” called the Queen to her maidservant, “Come quickly, Dianna!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

“The trunk is in my wardrobe closet. Count Amas has ordered two of his trusted men to secure it for me. They will take it to the cottage of the nursemaid Elnora and secret it there. We only hope they can avoid discovery.”

“Yes, madam,” the girl answered in a trembling voice.

“Disguise it with this linen cloth, Dianna, and lay flowers upon it. If noticed at all, a covered table will arouse less suspicion than a royal trunk.” The Queen of the Eastern Islands paused and lowered her head for a moment. Then glancing up at the servant girl, she said, “If evil befalls both Lady Elnora and me, reveal the trunk’s whereabouts only to a trusted friend. Perhaps my son Loren still has breath somewhere in this dim world and will come thither to claim it one day.”

“But, Your Majesty, surely the Lord Regent would not dare to hurt you!” The girl began weeping. Queen Maybella took her by the shoulders, fighting back her own tears.

“Forgive us, maiden, for we allowed evil to enter our beloved kingdom. Weep not for us. If we perish, we shall go to the White City. Weep for those who remain here in this place.” The lady’s voice became intense. “You must flee the palace if we are . . .removed. This wicked Usurper will come to his undoing some day. Yet as for you, without my protection, you will be. . . . Please, you must flee. Trust no strangers, Dianna. Aryel the White Knight will return. Be strong until then.”

(The increased power and control of the Lord Regent and his Black Guard had rendered the king and his advisors only figureheads. The royal family were little more than prisoners in their own palace. Fear of the attacks of a horrible dragon had spread like an epidemic over the citizens of the Eastern Island Kingdom of Ajar. In as much as it seemed only the Lord Regent had power over the fearsome beast, they had capitulated. Kneel or perish was his mantra. They were a free people no more. The few citizens who rebelled were killed, and so the underground resistance was born.)

The handmaiden of the queen did as her mistress bid her. When the soldiers came to take the trunk, it appeared to be a bench or table adorned for a summer tea. Several hours later, there came shouts and then screams from the royal family’s quarters. King Elmern’s voice was commanding, but to no avail. “Do not harm my sons! Take me only!”

A thunderous voice roared back, “Silence, you fool! If I would destroy you, why then would I leave an heir!” Following a tortuous silence, the Black Guards’ boots stomped through the halls. Then they paused behind the chapel door. The door shook from their pounding blows. The maidservant yet stayed by her mistress.

About The Author

Judy Carlson is from St. Paul, MN. She and husband Tim have six children and 20 grandchildren and reside in Missouri. Judy has a BA in English from Trinity International University. Her lifetime passion for literature and writing and the works of C.S. Lewis and Tolkien has permeated this novel with their characteristic sense of wonder. She wrote her first story at age nine, and has been the grand storyteller to her children and grandchildren.